Church showcases Nativity collections

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Cape Girardeau continued its tradition of showcasing hundreds of exotic Nativity scenes at its “Nativities From Around the World” exhibition at the church over the weekend.

In its sixth year, the walk-through exhibit houses more than 500 Nativity scenes from nearly 50 countries.

The self-guided tour through a hallway and six rooms included a scavenger hunt for children, guiding them through the displays in search of specific scenes and rewarding their efforts with a candy cane upon completion.

Many of the displays were courtesy of Jon Baker, who amassed his personal collection of 572 Nativities while serving in the U.S. Army in Europe.

His contributions to the congregation’s showcase included his favorite, unique Nativities — ranging from a beeswax Nativity scene he found in Ohio to a Kenyan Nativity scene made from bottle caps.

Mason Dean, 2, picks up a camel figurine while viewing a olive wood nativity scene from Jerusalem during the sixth annual Nativities From Around the World exhibition Saturday, Dec. 2, 2017, at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints in Cape Girardeau.BEN MATTHEWS ~ bmatthews@semissourian.com

Baker said the church exhibit provides an event to share his multicultural collection.

“It’s amazing the materials that people make things with,” Baker said. “For instance, there’s used newspaper made into a Nativity. There are seed pods that are a Nativity. It’s not just in the United States or in Europe, but around the world, there are people that believe in Christ.”

Baker’s selection of Nativities, combined with the church members’ contributions, brought the show’s number of Nativities to 585 — a number that grows each year.

Each room carried a theme, starting with a room featuring rustic, natural Nativities — some made with crochet, others with bale wire.

Another room depicted a child’s bedroom display, one rubber-duck Nativity and toy Nativities with characters from Peanuts, Precious Moments and Lego.

The biggest room, the gymnasium, featured larger scenes and housed international Nativities from countries such as Israel, Denmark and Peru.

After visiting the gymnasium, visitors concluded their tour in the “White Room,” which featured a calming display of monochromatic Nativities atop softly lit white tablecloths.

Nearly 100 volunteers helped exhibit chairwoman Claudia Mueller for about a week to prepare the display, with two days of staging Nativity scenes before opening for public tours Friday and Saturday.

Mueller said the exhibit physically shows the importance the Nativity holds around the world.

“I think it shows that the whole theme of Christmas and Christ’s birth is international,” Mueller said. “When you get them all together there’s a power. We love it.”

The seventh annual “Nativities From Around the World” will be held at the church the weekend after Thanksgiving in 2018.

bmatthews@semissourian.com

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